MLB First Basemen and Derek Jeter Pay Tribute to Lou Gehrig This Weekend (Tweet and Video)

On July 4th, 1939, Lou Gehrig, having retired from the Yankees just two weeks before, gave his immortal “Luckiest man on the face of the earth” speech to a crowd at Yankee Stadium. This weekend, on the 75th anniversary of that seminal event, the MLB, the Yankees, and first baseman around the league are paying tribute to the legend in a number of ways.

First off, all 30 MLB first basemen (and Derek Jeter, because he’s Mr. Yankee, I guess) appeared in this video to recite the famous speech. Take a look:

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The Yankees are also trotting out some pretty special bases that have the following language on them:

Nice move all around, especially for such a legend. Yesterday the Yanks also wore patches commemorating the anniversary.

Almost makes you want to cheer for the Yankees. Almost.

For those unfamiliar with the lore of Lou Gehrig, he was considered one of the all-time best first basemen until his career was tragically cut short by a disease known as ALS. Gehrig was the most notable case of the genetic disease, and so it’s now colloquially known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”

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